Malaysia

· Companies Operating in Less Developed Areas Get 100% Income Tax Exemption. Newly established companies or existing companies that expand operations into less developed areas will be eligible for 100% income tax exemption for up to 15 years, says International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed. He said the exemption was among the four new tax incentives under the 2015 Budget announced by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak last year. The other incentives are for industrial area management, establishment of principal hub and capital allowance to increase automation in labour intensive industries. Mustafa said companies that set up operations in remote areas would also be eligible for stamp duty exemption on transfer or lease of land or building used for development in relation to manufacturing and services activities. (Bernama) .

Asia

· Indian Services Growth Slowed in March - HSBC PMI. Growth in India's pivotal services industry lost some momentum in March as input prices rose at the fastest pace in nearly a year, a business survey showed on Monday. The HSBC Services Purchasing Managers' Index eased to 53.0 in March from February's eight-month high of 53.9. A reading above 50 indicates growth, and March was the 11th straight month of expansion. "India's service sector ended the first three months of 2015 with a strong performance, providing signals that much of the weakness seen in 2014 has been left behind," said Pollyanna De Lima, economist at Markit. "Despite softening slightly since the prior month, growth of activity and new business in the country's dominant sector was robust," she said. (Reuters)

· Singapore Tweaks Timetable for Curbs on Unsecured Credit. Singapore will implement curbs on credit card and other unsecured loans that banks can extend to individuals in stages, to give borrowers more time to reduce their debts, its central bank said on Monday. At issue is a rule originally announced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in September 2013, and due to take effect this June. The MAS had previously planned to prohibit financial institutions from providing more unsecured credit to borrowers whose total interest-bearing unsecured debt across all banks in Singapore exceeded 12 times their monthly income for three straight months, starting in June. To give borrowers more time to adjust, the MAS said it had now decided to phase in the rule over the next four years. The curb will take effect from June for borrowers whose total unsecured debt exceeds 24 times their monthly income. A stricter threshold of 18 times monthly income will start in June 2017, followed by 12 times in June 2019. (Reuters)

USA

· U.S. Service Sector Growth Slips in March—ISM Survey. The pace of growth in the U.S. services sector fell in March to its lowest level in three months but exports rose to the highest level in over two years, according to an industry report released on Monday. The Institute for Supply Management said its services index fell to 56.5 last month from 56.9 in February. The reading was in line with economists' forecasts. The March reading was the lowest since a matching reading last December. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector. The exports index rose, however, to 59.0 from 53.0 in February to mark the highest reading since February 2013. The employment index also rose, hitting its highest level since last October, with the reading coming in at 56.6 compared with 56.4 in February. Its index of business activity fell, meanwhile, to 57.5 in March from 59.4 in February and marking the lowest reading in a year. (Reuters)

· Final Markit PMI for March Puts U.S. Services Sector Activity at Highest since August. The U.S. services sector expanded in March at its fastest pace since August, an industry report showed on Monday. Financial firm Markit said its final reading of its Purchasing Managers Index for the services sector rose to 59.2 in March from 57.1 in February. The March reading was the highest level since August and was above the preliminary, or "flash," reading of 58.6. A reading over 50 signals expansion in economic activity. Markit's March reading of employment at service companies rose to 54.0, up from 52.7 in February and its highest reading since June. The March number was the same as the preliminary reading. The services index's new business component also rose in March to its highest since September. Markit's composite PMI, a weighted average of its manufacturing and services indexes, rose to 59.2 in March, its best reading since August, from 57.2 in February. The preliminary March reading was 58.5. (Reuters)

Europe

· Greece Moves to Quell Default Fears, Pledges to Meet 'All Obligations'. Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said on Sunday that Greece "intends to meet all obligations to all its creditors, ad infinitum," seeking to quell default fears ahead of a big loan payment Athens owes the IMF later this week. Following a meeting with the head of the International Monetary Fund, Varoufakis told reporters the government plans to "reform Greece deeply" and would seek to improve the "efficacy of negotiations" with its creditors. Greece has not received bailout funds since August last year and has resorted to measures such as borrowing from state entities to tide it over. It offered a new package of reforms last week in the hope of unlocking funds, but has yet to win agreement on the proposals with its EU and IMF lenders. Most urgently, Athens is on the hook for a roughly 450 million euro ($494 million) loan repayment to the IMF due this Thursday. (Reuters)

 Currencies

· Dollar Turns Higher in Late Trade, Thin Conditions. The U.S. dollar spiked higher against the euro on Monday, erasing early losses in what traders and strategists said is a result of thin holiday trading conditions. A dismal U.S. jobs report on Friday had cast a pall over the greenback in the last two trading sessions, both of which excluded much of Europe and Latin America markets due to the Easter holiday. The euro tumbled from around $1.09685, near the unchanged mark on the day, to a loss of 0.50% at the $1.0917 level in the span of about 40 seconds just after 3 pm. EDT (1900 GMT), on the EBS trading platform. It ultimately hit a session low $1.0910. As the U.S. market closed and Asia has yet to open, the euro traded off 0.31% at $1.0940. The dollar built steady gains on the Japanese yen throughout the day, trading up 0.50% to 119.515 in late activity, but off the session high 119.685 yen.. Against the Canadian dollar the greenback trimmed its losses as well, trading unchanged at C$1.2482. This puts it near the bottom of its C$1.24 to C$1.28 range that has been in place since the end of January. (Reuters)

Commodities

· Oil Slides after Agreement with Iran. Oil prices jumped more than 5% on Monday as traders reassessed how quickly Iran might increase exports after a preliminary nuclear deal and anticipated that a months-long rise in U.S. crude inventories may be slowing. Brent crude's rally followed Thursday's nearly 4% tumble after Iran and six world powers announced a framework agreement on the OPEC member's nuclear program. But initial expectations of a quick recovery in oil exports were tempered by views that it could take longer than expected to roll back sanctions. Brent May crude LCOc1 rose $3.17, or 5.77%, to settle at $58.12 a barrel, its biggest one-day percentage rise since surging 7.8% on Feb. 13. U.S. May crude CLc1 rose $3, or 6.11%, to settle at $52.14, the biggest percentage gain since gaining 7% on Feb. 3. (Reuters)

· Oil Jumps 5% on Tempered Iran View, Slower U.S. Inventory Rise. Gold rose to a seven-week high on Monday, climbing for the second straight session after U.S. jobs rose at the slowest pace in more than a year, fueling expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve could postpone an anticipated rate increase. Spot gold was up 0.6% at $1,217.66 an ounce at 1808 GMT, after rising 1.2% to the highest since Feb 17 at $1,224.10. Other precious metals rallied, with spot silver up 0.3% at $17.05 per ounce. Spot palladium jumped 3.8% to $768.50 an ounce and platinum climbed 1.7% to $1,175 an ounce after hitting a one-month high of $1,184.25 earlier. (Reuters)